Quite the character (1)

"Woods? I have never heard of such a last name. With your looks, I am sure you are not from around here," Beatrice said, giving Annalise a look over. If you lined all the servants up, Annalise would stand out with her wild hair. "You're different. Luckily, I happen to like different things."

"She is, isn't she?" Mavis forced a smile and pretended to agree with Beatrice. In her opinion, Annalise was the bad kind of different. She was hoping the lady would dislike Annalise and be the one to kick her out right away but with her terrible luck, Mavis now had to deal with Beatrice liking Annalise.

"It is hard to believe you are the young master's mother. You look so young," Annalise commented, finding the older woman to look young for having such a grown son. Annalise would have never believed Beatrice was Rafael's mother if she wasn't aware of the Callahans.

'She knows how to flatter someone. She's smart,' Beatrice thought as she tapped her finger against the table. Annalise's comment didn't come out as if she was trying too hard to make Beatrice like her. She was subtle with her advances. 'Well, this is interesting.'

Beatrice was used to the maids overly complimenting her in hopes she would pick them as her personal maid when she came to visit Rafael, or they thought pleasing the mother would help them get close to the son. She wondered which Annalise was trying to aim for.

"I like her," Beatrice smiled as she made up her mind. "Mavis, make sure she is the one to tend to me when I come for visits. You know Rafael is going to become busy with training instead of taking a moment to rest, and my husband will find someone who needs help to pass his time. I'll need someone like her by my side to keep me company."

Rafael didn't think Annalise was the most suitable person to keep his mother company. His mother was already quite the character so she didn't need someone with a mouth like Annalise's to further influence her. He had not gotten past Annalise's offer to show him her thigh. Rafael did not know Annalise but he already had a feeling there were worse things to come out of her mouth. "There are other maids-"

"Why not this one?" Beatrice quickly asked, picking up on the fact something must have happened between Rafael and Annalise. Rafael never stopped her from picking any maid she liked to tend to her when she visited. Was there a silver lining at the end of this day?

Beatrice gave Annalise a look over once more as she wondered if this was Rafael's type. She had gotten it wrong over the years if it was.

"Nothing," Rafael dropped it before his mother could get the wrong idea. It was obvious she started to overthink his words as she flashed him a big smile, and her eyes pleaded with him to tell her more. "Enjoy breakfast and find something to pass the time until father arrives. Stop frowning."

"I would if you brought home some good news," Beatrice pouted. At this rate, she would have to play with her sister's grandchildren since she was not getting any of her own any time soon. "Mavis, excuse Annalise from her duties to have her remain by my side. I prefer her company over my son at the moment," Beatrice tried to guilt Rafael into spending time with her.

"Yes ma'am," Mavis replied, still bothered by the lady's choice. She preferred to have one of the maids who followed her to be close to Beatrice. It was the best way to get any news on what was happening between mother and son.

Mavis was not going to waste time trying to bring Annalise under her wing. It would only start another series of headaches. It was much easier to wait for Annalise to mess up and for Beatrice to fire Annalise or for Mavis to fire Annalise herself.

Annalise found Beatrice to be more likeable than she anticipated. She was getting close to Beatrice faster than she planned, but it was better this way. She needed someone in the Callahan family to latch onto so Mavis could not keep trying to fire her. It also helped her plans concerning the Callahans that Beatrice seemed like the type to keep talking about Rafael's affairs. Annalise would use Beatrice to get information on Rafael.

"Your coffee," Annalise started to pour Rafael's coffee for him. She tried not to spill any as she focused on his cup.

Rafael glanced at Annalise's hands and then at his mother's. Annalise's hands were almost similar to those of a woman who had never worked a day in her life. He was curious, but then again, he didn't know much about Annalise. She could have lived an easy life until her parents decided it was time for her to work.

All of the maids working here did not come from poor backgrounds where they worked every day of their lives. For some, this was their first job, and they picked his home because of the good pay.

Rafael shook his head, feeling foolish for questioning her hands, but he couldn't help being so observant. It could be blamed on the fact he had just returned from long days of fighting and travelling, where he needed to be cautious about every single thing around him during that time. He had not settled down enough to not be on edge in his own home. It was a hard task to not grab for a weapon at the faintest odd noise.

"Are you alright, young master?" Annalise asked after noticing Rafael seemed lost in thought. Instead of giving her a response, Rafael only stared at her. Annalise thought he was asking her to leave him alone with his eyes, so she moved on to serve Beatrice coffee.

Beatrice couldn't help but sigh. Her question was answered now that she witnessed Rafael and Annalise interact with each other. There was nothing going on between the two. Rafael was still her silent precious son who had no time for women so she needed to live with this fact.

"Would you like coffee or tea?" Annalise asked Beatrice when she came over to her side. She wished to suggest a wine to help Beatrice deal with Rafael. Rafael was her only employer, and his silence was hard to bear. She couldn't imagine what it was like for Beatrice. "Wine?" She took a risk to ask.

Beatrice looked up at Annalise, for a moment thinking she misheard what the young woman suggested. Judging by Annalise biting her lip, Rafael looking at Annalise like she lost her mind, and Mavis turning red, Beatrice knew she had not heard wrong.

Beatrice snorted and quickly covered her mouth with her hands because of the unladylike noise. She tried not to laugh but could not refrain from doing so. "Wine?" Beatrice chuckled. "Yes, wine with breakfast would be lovely dear, but I'm afraid I must leave that for another day. Some juice would be nice."

"I will get it for you right away, Mrs Callahan," Annalise replied, happy to see Beatrice was not a stick in the mud like everyone else.

"Lovely, isn't she?" Beatrice asked Rafael. She was starting to consider stealing Annalise away from Rafael's home.

"That's not the word I would use," Rafael replied, having an entirely different opinion about the new maid.